


A small price to pay for our freedom

by Anonymous



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Background Relationships, Brief references to Reylo but it's clearly not a reality for this fic, Drug Addiction, Drug Use, M/M, Minor Character Death, No non-con between primary pairing, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Canon, Prostitute Armitage Hux, Rape/Non-con Elements, Sex Trafficking
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-07
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:33:33
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24576859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Five years after the Order's fall, a reformed Ben Solo meets the former General Hux in unexpected circumstances.
Relationships: Armitage Hux/Ben Solo, Armitage Hux/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Armitage Hux/Other(s)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 90
Collections: Anonymous





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title from The Indelicates, "A New Art For The People".
> 
> Specific topics can be tagged for on request.

In the five years since Ben Solo had laid his old name to rest, the wider galaxy had not changed beyond recognition.

The rule of the First Order had been dismantled, and the New Republic reinstated in its place, but there was still poverty where there had been poverty before, and suffering where there had been suffering. There was just a little less of it overall, and that had to suffice for now. Societies didn't heal overnight.

This was also, in part, why he and Rey were not re-establishing the Jedi Order outright, but instead quietly opening their doors to any Force-Sensitives who wanted to learn from them.

A training centre had been built on Ajan Kloss, and there were enough students living there now that Ben felt uneasy about leaving with Rey for this latest mission into Wild Space. It was a long round trip, and the thought of coming back to find the place razed to the ground - in a horrifying reenactment of what Ben had done two decades before - weighed heavy on his mind.

"You sure you don't want to call Dameron, have a few more troops brought in?" he asked Rey in the cockpit, as the woman began to fire up the launch sequence.

"Finn will be fine, Ben," she said, without looking at him. "Can you check the engineering console for me? I still don't trust the primary ignition unit. I can barely hear it."

"That's because you're used to flying antiques," Ben murmured, swivelling his chair. "Engines are fine. You know, I still don't get how you persuaded Finn to join up. He seemed pretty happy in his old position."

"I told him we wouldn't be enforcing the Jedi rules on attachment." Rey kept her eyes on the window. "Besides, I think you overestimate how much he enjoyed sharing an office with Poe. Would you want to work alongside _your_ husband every day?"

"Wouldn't know. Never been married."

Rey was quiet a moment. Ben didn't look at her, choosing instead to concentrate on the controls in front of him.

"There were rumours, you know. I'm sure you heard them," she said eventually.

"What, the ones about me and you?"

"What? No, piss off, I meant about you and General Hux."

Ben kept his mind carefully clear. He knew Rey wasn't in the habit of invading his thoughts, but he also didn't want her to sense anything. Perhaps she would anyway - she _was_ more powerful than him, after all - but dignity demanded he make the effort.

"I heard," he said. "Just rumours. Nothing more."

* * *

Hux was starting to sweat.

The Rodian who came in the morning with his spice hadn't arrived. He'd dragged himself off the flimsy mattress regardless, moved on trembling legs to help the other occupants of their small room pack up their beds and their belongings into the crates provided. The little Togruta girl who slept with her mother on the mattress beside him had woken in the early hours with another nightmare, so he was already tired to begin with, and when it was his turn to use the grimy fresher they all shared, his hands were barely steady enough to apply his eyeliner.

He stared at himself in the mirror when he was finally done. Though he didn't spend a lot of time outside, the planet's two suns had nevertheless been harsh on his skin. His face was almost covered in freckles now, and small lines were appearing at the edges of his eyes and mouth; even with his hair dyed blonde and kept long, he was starting to look old.

Hux leant on the sink, took a long breath to try and take control of his nausea. He would need to think about the implications of his ageing face, but not now. Now he could barely summon the willpower to stay upright.

Someone banged on the door. Hux swore at them half-heartedly in Sy Bisti and then vacated the fresher. He'd need to ask Pergin for some foundation, and his hair needed bleaching at the roots. But that could come after the spice.

He no longer even bothered to reprimand himself for the situation he was in. Now, his addiction was a fact of life, like the need for air. When he spotted Pergin at the bottom of the stairs, he could not disguise his expression of relief.

"I need spice," he murmured. The Rodian made a dismissive sound.

<<Later, later,>> he replied, in his native tongue. <<Sanamy's been looking for you. Go.>>

Hux rushed into Sanamy's office, which was, naturally, the best-furnished room in the whole building. While the cracks in the bedroom walls upstairs were usually covered with drapes and forgotten, here they tended to be repaired, and the desk and chairs had the same tacky ornateness as the mid-tier casinos down the street. It reminded Hux a little of what Snoke's private chambers had looked like, although the gold leaf had probably been genuine there. He never dwelt on the comparison these days. The First Order was a lifetime away, now, and Hux had more important things to think about.

Hux had not yet been able to learn what species Sanamy actually was - he was some kind of insectoid, like a Tognath or a Kel Dor, but different enough from these two species that he didn't need a mask to breathe. Sanamy's mandibles clicked irritatedly as Hux entered, a curse in his own language, and then addressed him in halting Huttese, perhaps for the benefit of the office's other inhabitant.

<<You sleep too much, Sun-spots. Work to do.>>

He gestured. Hux's eyes alighted on the stranger properly for the first time, and what he saw surprised him. Humans were rare in this part of the galaxy - part of the reason that he was still kept here, despite the fact he was almost two decades past the industry's prime - and the rough-stubbled, disdainful face in front of him was so unfamiliar to him now that he almost forgot the two of them were the same species. It was as if Hux had become an alien to his own people.

The man, clearly some kind of mercenary judging by his clothing, gave Hux a once-over. Sanamy made another gesture.

<<This man is good friend. You will make him comfortable, yes? Upstairs.>>

Hux hesitated, then leant closer to Sanamy. <<I didn't get anything this morning,>> he hissed, in Rodian. <<I can't work if I'm spice-sick.>>

Sanamy gave a low hiss of irritation. <<If you can stand on legs, you can spread them. Upstairs! Spice later. Go.>>

Hux realized, with a sinking in his stomach, that he would pay for his insubordination later, but his cravings were quickly overriding all rational thought. The sooner he got this over with, the sooner he could get his fix. So he flashed the visitor a stiff smile and gestured for him to follow.

The stairwell was so narrow they had to ascend in single-file. Hux led the man up two flights and showed him into one of those cheap, plush bedrooms he had never yet been allowed to sleep in, although he'd passed out in them from time to time. He started to undo his tunic as soon as the door was closed. Stubble-face came up behind him, hands moving to grasp his upper arms once they were free of Hux's sleeves.

"Sun-spots, huh?" he murmured against Hux's neck. Surprised to hear someone speaking Basic here, Hux glanced over his shoulder.

"He means 'freckles'. They don't have a word for that in Huttese," he said, as he lay his tunic aside.

"Only shared language we have, I think." The man pulled Hux round to face him. "So do I call you sun-spots or freckles?"

"Whichever you like. What do I call you? Or should I just cut the kark and get on my knees for you?"

"It's Diro. And I was hoping for your ass." Diro's body smelt faintly of sweat and cigarras. He pulled him close for a moment, hands moving to rest on Hux's rear. 

Hux bit back a curse. This one seemed like he wanted to take his time, maybe even have Hux seduce him. On the whole, he vastly preferred those customers who just wanted to come and then leave. Diro must have sensed his reluctance, because he touched Hux's cheek with a pensive look.

"You know, I got a personal supply with me, if it's spice you want. Don't need to understand Rodian to know you're craving something."

Hux could have kissed him. Instead, he grinned, and said, "Sweetheart, if you fix me up, you can put it wherever you want."

It used to be that part of Hux's soul would let out a soundless scream of rage, when this happened; that something would fight and kick against his higher consciousness as he got on his hands and knees or his back and let one more stranger fuck him. But that didn't happen any more.

It was better this way.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments! I always love to read them, however brief they may be :)
> 
> Note: Rey and Kylo are posing as a married couple here, but neither of them take it seriously and Rey ends up calling him a twat.
> 
> Other content warnings available on request.

_**Five years ago** _

"I have to hand it to you, Dopheld." Hux wiped a smear of oil from his cheek and flexed his sore wrist. "I never expected you'd be able to make so many credits in such a short time. At this rate, we'll have the ship up and flying again within 48 hours."

Mitaka smiled and looked down. Uneasiness crossed his face, but when it disappeared a moment later, Hux convinced himself he'd been imagining it. "Thank you, sir- uh, Armitage," the former Lieutenant said. "I guess it's a lot easier to win at sabacc when the locals aren't used to human expressions."

"Mm. Not going to attract too much attention, are we?" Hux looked around at the near-deserted landing area, its duracrete surface steaming in the heat of the morning suns. They still weren't far enough from the remnants of the First Order for his liking, and the breakdown of their vessel had only compounded his worries. The sooner they could get into the void again, the better.

Mitaka shook his head. "I'm being careful," he replied quietly. "Anyway, we'll be gone before we know it."

_**Now** _

"Two suns, huh?" Ben squinted into the evening sky as he descended the landing ramp. The air was already growing cold, but Ben didn't mind. It just felt good to be outside again.

"Four, actually, but two of them are distant enough that you can't usually see them during the day." Rey trudged down the slope behind him, bag slung over her shoulder. "You'd know that if you'd bothered to read the briefing documents."

"I read them," Ben protested, half-hearted and amused. "Sort of."

"You had _all that time_ in the shuttle." Rey looked around them, her eyes narrowed as she got her bearings. "Main settlement's this way. I'll need to get a message to our contact. Hopefully we can arrange a meeting within the week."

"Hopefully?"

"We have plenty to do in the meanwhile," she chirped, as she set off toward the town. "Remember, we're a husband and wife team-"

"-of small-time smugglers. I get it." Ben brushed at some of the dust already clinging to his jacket. "I didn't spend half my waking hours teaching you sabacc for fun."

"Clearly, or you wouldn't have 'let me win' so many times." Rey flashed a grin at him.

"You wouldn't have won so often if you hadn't been cheating."

"Keep telling yourself that. I didn't use the Force _once._ " The woman adjusted the blaster on her belt, triumphant. "You're just a sore loser."

"Married two minutes and I'm already considering a divorce," Ben teased. Rey made an obscene gesture back at him without looking.

"It'll have to wait. If the locals see a human on his own they'll assume he's a sex worker like the others. And you don't want to get on the wrong side of the pimps in this place."

"How do you know all this?"

"I'll give you a clue," Rey said, as the two of them made their way down the crumbling path to the bright distant lights of the town. "It begins with the letter 'I' and ends with 'actually read the briefing documents, you lazy twat'."

* * *

The bedroom was cramped, and smelt of Diro's sweat. Cushioned by the effects of whatever was in the cigarras he'd been given, Hux found it only mildly unpleasant. These days he preferred to inject his spice rather than smoke it, since inhalation rarely took the edge off these days, but the stuff Diro had given him seemed to be cut with something he wasn't used to, and it gave him a relaxing buzz. Beside him, the man sat up and began to pull on his boots.

"Got something else for you, before we leave," he muttered. Hux raised his eyebrows. Diro hadn't struck him as the tipping kind, but the galaxy was full of surprises. He hoped it was credits rather than a gift. Credits were easier to hide; a gift would almost certainly be stolen, or taken by his hosts in payment of his ever-mounting debts.

"Tell Ibu her little girl's medicine is at the Spacer's Rest," Diro continued, standing up to buckle his belt.

"Medicine?" Hux furrowed his eyebrows. Ibu's daughter may have suffered from nightmares, but Hux hadn't known she was actually ill.

"Togruta chick? I'm told she works with you."

"I know who she is." Hux took a leisurely puff. "Can I assume this is something we don't need to bother Sanamy or Pergin about?"

"I knew you were a smart one, Freckles." Diro grinned back at him. _Patronising fuck,_ Hux thought. "Keep it quiet, and I won't ask your bosses to reimburse me for that fine _ubat_ you're smoking." 

"Sounds like a deal," Hux murmured. Diro reached over to pat his cheek.

"Attaboy. I'll see you around, Sun-spots."

 _Sure_ , thought Hux. _If I'm ever in the mood for mediocre sex with a guy who doesn't wash, I'll give you a comm_.

Instead, he only smiled.


End file.
